Ron DeSantis Just Called a Special Session That Could End Property Taxes for Florida Homeowners

Florida's property tax collections exploded 108 percent between 2014 and 2024 – while the state's population grew just 17 percent.

Now Ron DeSantis just called a Special Session starting Monday to make homestead property taxes disappear entirely.

Here's the plan he unveiled today – and why the local government bureaucrats who spent your money are already nervous.

What DeSantis Announced in Tampa

Standing behind a podium that read "Save Our Homes," DeSantis laid out a phased path to eliminating homestead property taxes in Florida forever.

The immediate move: raise the homestead exemption to $250,000.

That alone cuts taxes for 60% of Florida homeowners.

From there, the Legislature would be required – DeSantis used the word "commanded" – to build a phase-out schedule eliminating homestead taxes entirely for properties up to $500,000.

That covers 92% of Florida homeowners.

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New residents would still pay homestead taxes for their first five years in the state – a provision designed to ensure the benefit goes to Floridians who built it, not newcomers looking to cash in immediately.

Snowbirds, foreign property owners, and commercial real estate stay on the tax rolls.

The proposal goes to voters in November as a constitutional amendment requiring 60% approval in both legislative chambers first – then 60% of Florida voters to ratify it.

The Bureaucrats Who Made This Fight Necessary

This Special Session exists because local governments spent a decade treating your property like an ATM.

Florida CFO Blaise Ingoglia has been auditing local governments across the state, and what his team found is exactly what you suspected.

Manatee County's property tax revenue jumped 86 percent over six years while the population grew 14 percent.

Miami spent $94 million more than inflation and population growth would justify – in a single fiscal year.

Ingoglia called Manatee's budget the worst he'd seen, telling residents directly: "They took the extra money, they spent it. They should be giving it back to you."

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Tampa Mayor Jane Castor pushed back on the reform, claiming every dollar of the city's $380 million in property tax revenue goes to police and fire.

DeSantis's answer: prove it.

His plan requires that remaining property tax collections fund only core services – schools and first responders – not the sprawling bureaucracies local officials have been feeding for years.

Why the Numbers Are Almost Impossible to Beat

Stetson University polled Floridians this spring on eliminating homestead property taxes.

Seventy-seven percent said yes.

Eighty-five percent of Republicans said yes.

Even 68% of Democrats said yes.

A Florida homeowner paid 47.5% more in property taxes in 2024 than they did in 2019 – and home prices drove every dollar of it.

Local governments didn't lower rates as values climbed.

They spent the windfall.

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DeSantis called it exactly what it is: "basically paying rent to the government to live on your own property."

The Special Session runs through June 3.

If it clears the Legislature, Florida voters decide in November.

No state in the country has eliminated property taxes on primary residences at this scale.

If this passes, Florida becomes the first state with no income tax and no property tax on your home – simultaneously.

Democrats can campaign against that in 2028 if they want.

Find a voter who takes that bet.

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Sources:

• A.G. Gancarski, "Save our homes: Gov. DeSantis calls 'historic' Special Session that could lead to end of homestead property taxes," Florida Politics, May 27, 2026.
• "Florida Property Tax Push Exposes Rift Between DeSantis and Lawmakers," Newsweek, April 24, 2026.
• "DeSantis Details Phased Approach to Eliminate Florida Property Taxes with 2026 Ballot Requirement," Fox Business, December 5, 2025.
• "Florida CFO Calls Manatee County's Budget the 'Worst' He's Seen in Tax Audit," Bradenton Herald, October 2025.
• "DeSantis Dismisses House Proposals on Property Tax Reduction in 2026," Florida Phoenix, October 23, 2025.
• Florida TaxWatch, Property Tax Levy Report, 2024.